Treating your friends like a pet

Here is my story of well the last two years and what I mean about treating your friends like your pet. I was married and we have a son and a dog. From time to time I get my dog (ok Connor’s dog) along with Connor. It is a real treat to have them both over and there is something so magical when you have the combination of a boy and his dog. Connor has Friday off of school and he wanted to spend more time with me this weekend. Let me just say that is another humbling experience when you child wants to spend time with you. I know that we need to get as much time together because there will (hopefully never) that day when he does not need you and would rather “hang with his homies” or what ever the kids say today. I picked up Connor on a Wednesday night and once I get his bag, bike, and scooter in the car he starts to cry. I am thinking that it is because he is going to miss his mom. When I was his age I went through the same thing when my parents were divorced, so I fully understand. However that was not the case, he was upset because he wanted to bring Keewee the family dog, and she is an Australian Shepherd. He asked if we could have her for the weekend. Originally we had plans that included time away from home but those plans changed so I told him “yes she can come with us.” We both were happy to have the three of us together.

Last night when I was laying in bed Keewee jumped into bed and I started to rub her belly and telling her that she was a “good girl.” Then it occurred to me why don’t we treat others like our pets? We do not praise enough either in the work place or at home enough. I made a very conscience effort this morning to be more aware of the positive things that Connor was doing. For example I had the alarm set for 7 AM to get Connor up and dressed before breakfast in-order to get Keewee a walk. Not only was he up a few minutes before 7, he was dressed. Not only was he dressed but the attitude he had was very positive. He was very happy and I was too because it meant that there would be no battles to get out the door on time. I told him right away how proud of him I was for being dressed and ready. Another example to treat people like our pets is to simply be genuine when giving out praises. Another example in the morning was that Connor was sitting at the table eating his breakfast. To me that was another positive occurrence since he was not only eating but not as I call it “goofing.” I then told him again how proud I was of him eating his breakfast.

To many of you this might not be a big thing I mean you ate breakfast and nobody told you how proud they were for doing it. Nobody gave you a High-Five for getting dressed all by yourself. The point for me was to encourage good behavior as well as setting a positive tone for Connor and his day going forward while at school. There are often times we hear that old saying” someone got out of bed on the wrong side.” I used to have a boss who would tell us that we had a choice of how to control our moods. We could be in a good one or a bad one it was our choice, it was our decision. For the longest time I honestly did not “get it” nor did I even think about it, until recently reading books like “How Starbucks Saved My Life” by Michael Gates Gill or “Fish” by Stephen C. Lundin PH.D, Harry Paul, and John Christensen. Honestly don’t you as a person feel better telling someone that they did a great job on a proposal or thanking someone who drove you to a sporting event?

The joy that I have for Connor and Keewee is so electrifying when the two are here and part of my life. As I am writing this Keewee is just laying on the floor after a long walk we finished up. As we walked I would praise her because I want to let her know the pleasure she brings to me. Now why can’t we do that for one another on a daily basis? I will be realistic here and say I do not mean for you to go up to your boss and give them a belly rub, no I think that is usually a HR issue. When was the last time you did speak to your boss or a co-worker and simply say “I enjoy working with you” or something to that effect. When was the last time you told a friend or loved one something positive? Heck if you really do want to treat someone like a dog ask them “want to go for a walk?”